Butterflies
by Jennifer Collins
Summary: Jessie gets a strange feeling in her stomach when Buzz tries to talk to her. A companion to "Girl of My Dreams."


Disclaimer: I don't own the Toy Story movies or characters.

**Butterflies**

By Jennifer Collins

Jessie rose from her perch on the bed as soon as she heard Andy shut the door tightly behind him. She picked up her right leg and held it in her left hand. The name "Andy" was written on the bottom of her boot in black marker. Black permanent marker. Across from her Bullseye bashfully showed her the bottoms of his horseshoes. Jessie laughed loudly, unable to contain her excitement. Behind her, someone cleared his throat. Jessie whirled her head around and her heart leapt into her throat when she saw Buzz Lightyear approach her.

She flipped her braid over her shoulder and smiled warmly at him. "Uh, ma'am?" He started, and she rested a hand on her hip as she regarded him closely. His bright blue eyes were intense and he nervously shuffled his feet. She looked at him skeptically for a moment. Why on earth would Buzz Lightyear be nervous around her? "I just want to say that you're a bright young woman with a beautiful…."

Jessie's green eyes sparkled and her heart pounded loudly in her chest. She hoped he couldn't hear. Was Buzz Lightyear making a move on her? She thought for a moment as he choked out a sweet compliment about her hair. He was absolutely dreamy in every sense of the word. Strong, charming, brave, and totally handsome. She giggled a little at his awkwardness and her enthusiasm got the best of her as she threw her arms about his neck. "Why aren't you just the sweetest space toy I've ever met!" She shouted. She wanted to say something else, but suddenly Slinky informed them that Buster needed help. Her sense of duty took over and she rushed to his aid. She'd deal with Buzz later.

Once Jessie got the door open to let the dog out, she looked back up at the bed to see if he was watching her. Her stomach did a somersault and her cheeks grew hot when she realized that he was.

"Looks like someone's got a crush," a female voice said coyly behind her. Jessie turned quickly around to see a tall, slender looking porcelain figure in a big puffy dress. The other girl smiled at her and offered her a hand. "We haven't been properly introduced. I'm Bo Peep."

Jessie slowly shook her hand. "They call me Jessie, the yodeling cowgirl," she said with a grin.

Bo Peep nodded her head towards the bed where Buzz was now talking to Woody. "So you like him?"

Jessie was confused. "I'm not after your man or anything," she said, a little suspiciously as she recalled the Sheriff sneaking into a corner with this woman when they'd got back from the toy store a few hours ago.

Bo shook her head. "I was asking about Buzz, but that's good to know," she said laughing.

Jessie blushed at the mention of his name. She was grateful when Woody walked up behind Bo and wrapped his arms around her, distracting her from their conversation. Her smile froze on her face when she realized that Buzz was with him. She tried to recall what she'd been about to say to him earlier, but his perfect teeth were a shiny sparkling white as he smiled widely at her and her head got all foggy.

"Hello again, Miss Jessie," Buzz said respectfully.

Jessie swallowed hard. "Um… it's just Jessie," she said with a warm smile. "You don't have to be so formal."

Buzz nodded. Jessie studied him closely, wondering if he was still as nervous as she apparently was. He cleared his throat once more before saying in a low voice. "Well I just wanted to welcome you officially into Andy's room." His blue eyes locked on her green ones, which had grown slightly wider. She wasn't sure how long they'd been staring at each other like that before he added, "Just let me know if there's anything that you need."

"Thank you," Jessie replied, tugging nervously on her braid. She noticed his gaze flicker to her hair again and a look she didn't recognize flashed across his face for a moment. She hooked her fingers through her belt loops, suddenly self conscious.

Just then a small squeaker toy she'd heard Woody call Wheezy picked up Mr. Mike and began singing a snappy tune. She smiled and turned her gaze back to Buzz, but was disappointed when Woody whisked him away to the window.

Bo Peep was still standing nearby and she walked over to her new friend. Some other toys had started to dance and she didn't want to be left out. Bo smiled warmly and Jessie politely tipped her hat. Bo laughed and grabbed Jessie's hand. "Come on," she said as she moved to the beat. Jessie grinned and eagerly joined her. She could tell that she and this girl would become great friends.

Just as she was getting into dancing with Bo, Woody and Buzz rejoined them. Bo happily wrapped her arms around Woody's waist and leaned her head against his chest as he pulled her near.

Jessie clasped her hands behind her back and looked up at her friends. Buzz was lingering next to her and she noticed a strange look pass between him and Woody. Woody winked at Buzz over Bo's head and she thought she saw Buzz's cheeks flush a light pink for a moment. She pondered this for a second until she saw Bo catch her gaze. Bo gave her a meaningful look before nodding towards Buzz. Jessie's heart skipped a beat as she tried to decipher what Bo meant by that look. Maybe he did like her after all….

A quick glance in his direction told her she was right as he quickly averted his eyes when he saw her look at him. Her heart pounded wildly as she felt him move closer to her, not nearly as smoothly as he thought.

With a gulp, she decided to make this easy for him and she leaned her arm on his shoulder. Buzz's face lit up at her friendly gesture and he tapped his foot lightly to the beat. She grinned as she bounced right along to the music, keeping in perfect time with Buzz's movements. Every now and then she'd catch him steal a glance at her and she'd throw her braid over her shoulder and smile warmly at him, which in turn would make him blush. Jessie giggled out loud. She could get used to this.

She let her eyes wander over to where Woody and Bo were right next to them in an all out cuddle now. She looked away quickly in embarrassment and as she turned her head she saw Buzz do the same. He was looking straight ahead now, though, and she felt a flicker of disappointment that he wasn't looking at her anymore. Plus now that she couldn't see his eyes, she could no longer tell what he was thinking. Was he embarrassed because he wanted to cuddle with her? Her stomach fluttered at the thought and she tried to steady her emotions.

Without thinking, she nudged him in his side with her elbow and he turned to look at her with wide eyes. He was so cute she couldn't help but to smile widely at him and she pushed her hat back on her head. He flashed her another charming smile and her eyes widened involuntarily. She wondered if he noticed the slight flush that rushed to her face. If he did, he didn't show it and Jessie could tell that she was going to have to be the one to make a move. Her stomach felt as if a thousand butterflies were flying around inside it and her heart hammered violently in her chest.

Slowly, she moved closer to him and leaned her head on his shoulder. She felt him start at her movement but in an instant his arm was wrapped tightly around her. After a few minutes, he pulled her closer against him and she wrapped her arms around his waist. Well now, this wasn't so bad… Jessie took a deep breath and the smell of fresh peppermint filled her senses. She looked up at Buzz and smiled, and he smiled back. She looked quickly at Bo and Woody and flushed slightly when she saw them whispering as they looked at her and Buzz.

She turned her head and settled deeper into Buzz's arms. She closed her eyes when she felt his fingers unconsciously stroke her hair.

All too soon, Wheezy stopped singing and announced "Thank you, thank you everybody!" to the cheers of the other toys in the room.

Jessie reluctantly picked her head up, but she held onto Buzz's hand, not wanting some other toy to come and take his attention away from her. All around her, toys were arranging themselves in small groups, starting up board games and chattering enthusiastically about Wheezy's new squeaker.

Jessie watched as Bo and Woody took a few steps away from them and for a moment she felt a flicker of panic, but then she saw Buzz smile as he looked down at their conjoined hands. She felt a surge of excitement as she eagerly asked, "Now what?"

"Anything you'd like," he told her, his blue eyes sincere.

For a second she wondered just what "anything" entailed, and she giggled. "Well how about showing me around this place?" She suggested, deciding to behave for now.

She started to move forward and Buzz took several long strides to keep up. He took a step in front of her. "Who's giving this tour, me or you?" He teased and she laughed delightedly. It seemed the slight awkwardness between them had already disappeared.

"Okay, Space Boy," she teased back, gesturing with her hand. "You lead the way."

He eagerly took her hand and pulled her forward, but then she saw him look up at Bo and Woody, who were waving to them from the window sill. She rolled her eyes. Didn't they know that she could take it from here? "Come on, Buzz!" She shouted.

Buzz was smiling as he let her pull him along and he quickly jogged in front of her, taking the lead once more. "Okay, that's the bed. That's the desk, that's the tv. Rex is learning how to beat Zurg in the Buzz Lightyear video game," he informed her.

She clapped her hands. "There's a Buzz Lightyear video game?"

He nodded happily. "We could play it later when they're done," he said.

"What else, what else?" She jumped up and down, unable to contain her enthusiasm. She stopped for a second, wondering if it was too much, but he didn't seem to mind.

"There's the toy box," He said, pointing to a large green toy chest near the desk.

Jessie froze for a moment.

"What's the matter?" Buzz asked with a frown when she didn't continue on.

Jessie shook her head.

Buzz leaned closer to her and put a hand on her shoulder. "Jessie, you can talk to me," he said gently.

She turned her wide green eyes to look at his face. "Will I have to go in there?"

Buzz sighed. "I-I'm not sure." He placed a hand on her back. "I heard about the whole storage thing," he confessed.

Jessie shrugged and pulled away. "Come on!" She shouted again, hoping he wouldn't be able to detect her lack of enthusiasm.

Buzz kept a tight grip on her arm and pulled her back. "I want you to know that I'm here for you, You'll never have to go back into storage as long as I'm watching out for you," he promised.

Jessie's heart fluttered at the look of intensity on his face and she knew his words were true. "Thanks, Buzz," she said quietly as she gave him a quick hug. A smile crept across her cheeks when he held on just a second too long.

They continued with the tour and Buzz pointed out the difference between the closet door and the door to the hallway, highlighting the quickest way to Molly's room.

"What would you like to do now?" Buzz asked her once the tour was over.

Jessie thought for a moment. "How about the video game?"

He nodded eagerly and turned his head towards the tv across the room.

"But you'll have to catch me first!" She shouted. She tugged on his arm once before taking off and he grinned widely as he called for her to wait for him. She laughed as she ran, knowing that he would come after her, and he did.

When he finally caught up to her, he wrapped his arms around her waist from behind and tackled her to the floor. "Okay, I give, I give!" She giggled as he tickled her waist. She waited a couple of seconds, panting for effect until he relaxed his grip on her and then she threw her body against, trying to pin him to the floor, but he was too fast for her.

Buzz caught both her wrists in his hands easily. Jessie laughed loudly, then stopped abruptly when she looked up and realized he was still on top of her. Buzz looked down at her, slightly out of breath. He cleared his throat and rolled off of her, but not before she caught the mischievous sparkle in his eyes. "Well, it looks like I've met my match in you, Cowgirl," Buzz said. He held out his hand, and she eagerly took it. "You put up a good fight," he added.

She laughed as she straightened herself up and sat beside him. "Thanks for the tour," she said. "It was great."

Buzz bowed his head slightly. "It was my pleasure. So what do you think of Andy's room?"

Jessie felt the butterflies in her stomach flap their wings wildly as his eyes stared into hers. "I think I'm gonna like it here," She said with a wink.


End file.
